Vampire Knight: Convicted
by Saved by Dark Innocence
Summary: Zero Kiryuu and his comrades are older, wiser and starting a new life outside of Cross Academy walls, attending University and working odd jobs to stay alive. Zero has never forgotten his Vampire Hunter bloodline, and when a horde of Level Es slowly start to descend in their little town, Zero has to step up and keep his family safe and hidden. SEQUEL TO VK: INNOCENCE. PLEASE REVIEW
1. Preface

Vampire Knight

 **Convicted**

A VK Fanfiction

 _ **Preface**_

"Can I can a milkshake over here?"

"Just a minute!"

The little café was bustling with the noise of patrons and customers as the waiters and waitresses scurried from place to place delivering food and collecting dishes. Mona stood behind the main counter, writing a report on the café's progress. She was glad that it had increased since hiring more people but seeing it was the only café that stayed open so late, her little shop was the town's favourite.

The little bell rang in the distance, announcing a new customer. She looked up and smiled, "Welcome to Late Night Café! Shall I get you a table?"

"Good evening," the new patron greeted with a small smile. She pointed to the table at the back, "I'd like to sit there please. I'm sorry if it's a strange request. I just like watching the people."

Mona's dark eyes went to the table at the back and she gathered up a menu, "Of course, right this way," she took the new patron to the table at the back right in the corner where anyone could see the whole café. The patron sat down and Mona was about to present a menu––

"I know what I'm having, thank you," the kind patron held up her hand. "I would like a steak please. Rare with some potatoes if it's at all possible."

"One rare steak coming up! Would you like something to drink?" the patron shook her head as Mona jotted down the order. She gathered up the menu and the new patron grabbed her wrist.

"Um, one more thing. I want the steak to be really, really rare. As if it was just cut from the cow," the woman smiled widely.

Mona raised an eyebrow, "You want your steak raw?"

The woman giggled, "Sorry. Pregnancy cravings!"

Mona smiled, "Oh, of course! I understand completely," she smiled widely. "One rare steak coming right up!"

Mona went back to the counter to place her order. It wasn't so strange to get such a strange request. It seemed that the later they went into the night, the stranger the request. And Mona's sister had strange cravings as well with her first child. While Mona waited for her order, she scanned the café that with every passing moment seemed to take her patrons away––

 _Ding_!

She turned, "Welcome to the Late Night Café!" she stopped but still smiled, "Oh hello Mr. Mysterious. No shadow today?"

"Not today, no. He's at home," her usual guest replied. His dark eyes met hers and he gave her a heart-breaking beautiful smile, "Quite busy tonight, aren't we?"

"Just a usual Friday night," Mona replied. She glanced at her watch, "If we aren't too busy, Baby Doll can leave her usual time."

"We can wait. We're not exactly in a rush to get home," he knocked her counter with his knuckles, "But I'll be waiting in my usual booth."

"Oh, sorry, dear. Your booth has been taken by another customer," Mona gestured to the woman sitting at the back. "A pregnant mommy that needs to satisfy her cravings," there was a ding behind her. She whirled around and there her bloody steak sat in the plate, "And here it is! A really, really rare steak. Sit by the bar, dear. We'll hopefully be done soon."

He nodded and moved to the bar, keeping his eyes not on Mona, on the pregnant woman at the back of the café. Mona gathered up the utensils and stopped, "Baby Doll, your escort is here."

Her eyes immediately darted to the table at the back but she searched the café until she found him. She smiled at Mona, "Oh, thanks Mona. I'll say hi to him when I'm done."

"Good girl," Mona grinned and continued on her path, placing the raw steak in front of her patron. "Will there be anything else?"

"This is perfect, thank you," the woman replied.

Mona left her customer and marched back to the counter so continue her report. As time dragged on slowly, her guests left until it was Mr. Mysterious and the strange woman only. One by one her employees left as well, and Baby Doll was the last.

She stood in front of Mona, "We can wait for you, if you want Mona," she smiled just as Mr. Mysterious came up beside her.

"Thank you but I'll be fine on my own," Mona replied. She brushed her hair behind her ear, "And I stay just across the road. I will be fine."

"I'd rather stay with you, Mona," Baby Doll suggested.

"I'll be fine, Baby Doll," Mona pinched her best waitress's cheek and smiled, "Go along with Mr. Mysterious, now. I will see you tomorrow."

Baby Doll glanced over nervously at the woman and then at her friend. She gave up with a single nod and then turned to the door and the couple left. Leaving Mona and her guest alone. Mona watched her guest, who wasn't eating the steak. Instead, she just watched it. Mona decided to close up the rest of her shop while her guest finished. She double checked all the doors and came back to the front of her shop, only to see that her guest had left.

She marched to the table and saw that her guest hadn't touched the food but she had left money beside the plate. Mona sighed and gathered the money and the food and walked to the kitchen. She put the money in the till and decided to throw the food away. As she discarded the potatoes and was surprised to see that they weren't drenched in blood like they'd normally be. She cut the steak and saw that it was completely dry. There was no blood anywhere. How strange.

Mona shook her head and discarded the food, cleaned up and locked the kitchen. She put on her coat and left her little café, locking the doors behind her––

"Excuse me," Mona jumped and turned to face who frightened her. It was her last customer. She covered her mouth, "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you!"

"Oh, no, sorry," Mona chuckled. "I'm usually not disturbed when I lock up," she wiped her brow and smiled at the woman, "Did you enjoy your steak? You barely touched it."

"It was good," the woman nodded and fiddled with her hands. "But I'm afraid, it wasn't what I was craving for. And I don't think I can stand it much longer…"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Mona touched her shoulder. "Perhaps you'll want something else tomorrow?"

"I don't think I have that long," the woman began trembling underneath Mona's palm. To Mona's surprise the woman grabbed Mona's wrist and pulled her forward, "I need more blood!"

The woman screeched and locked her jaw down onto Mona's neck. Mona screamed and fought the woman off, freeing her from her grasp. Mona held her neck where the woman had bitten her and stared at her. She changed now. She looked too skinny and her eyes glowed a strange red. But fangs grew from her mouth as Mona's blood dripped down her lip onto her very dirty white jacket.

The woman stumbled forward and reached out her hand, licking her bloody lips, "I need more! I'm sorry! I need more!"

The woman jumped forward but Mona began running away, far down the street and into an alley. There was a dead end and when Mona turned around, the woman was standing there, staring at her with glowing red eyes.

"Please, please don't hurt me!" Mona begged as she sank down to her knees.

The woman ran forward and Mona covered her head, shut her eyes and screamed. She waited for the impact but none ever came. In the darkness, she could hear a loud and piercing gunshot echo into the night. She didn't feel pain, and she didn't feel any attack. Mona opened one eye and saw that the alley was empty. She searched for the woman that had attacked her but there was no one.

She stumbled to her feet and waited for the woman to appear and attack again but the attack never came. She carefully left the alley, and searched relentlessly for the woman. But she only saw a couple walking towards her.

"Miss Mona," her Baby Doll called out. "What are you doing in the alley?"

Mona searched for the woman, "A woman…she attacked me…but," she searched for and walked to the couple and grabbed the young girl's shoulders, "I was attacked by some woman!"

The girl cocked her head to the side, "I don't see anyone," she reached out and touched Mona's collar, "I do see a small scratch on your neck though. It's a good thing it's not deep!"

"But the woman bit me," Mona said frantically. She touched her neck, expecting to find a flood of blood but they was just a little dab, "She bit me!"

"All I see is a tiny scratch, Miss Mona," Baby Doll replied. She smiled, "I think you've had a hard working day. You must be tired. I will walk you to your building. Does that sound good?"

Mona was about to respond when she felt someone behind her. She whirled around and saw that a tall man was standing behind her wearing a leatherjacket and a knitted beanie. His violet eyes peered down at her curiously. He greeted with a small nod.

"Oh, Zero! You're here already!" Baby Doll grabbed Mona's arm. "I was just about to take Miss Mona back to her apartment. She's had a very stressful day!"

Mona allowed herself to be dragged back to her building just across the road from her little café. Baby Doll was the only one speaking while Mr. Mysterious and Zero hung back. She was escorted up the stairs and unlocked the door. She turned to face the young adults before her.

Kira smiled at her, "Don't worry about me, Miss Mona! Zero and Kaito will take good care of me," she smiled brightly, "And you'll rest safely tonight!"

Mona nodded quietly and slowly closed the door. She quickly ran up the stairs to her apartment and quickly ran inside, discarding her bag and keys on the floor. She ran to her window and ripped the curtain aside and looked downstairs. Her new waitress, the one she dubbed Baby Doll was walking beside Mr. Mysterious and his shadow.

Kira seemed to be the lively one as she probably told the two tall men (who acted like body guards) about her day. She seemed happy to see them, and they looked happy to see her, too. There was no sign of the mysterious woman who'd attacked her anywhere. Or a shooter. Mona felt the colour drain from her skin as Zero, the boy with silver hair and violet eyes looked up at her window – directly at her – and just stare. Mona closed the curtain and just stood in front of the window, watching the trio walk off to where ever they lived, but even though they looked carefree, their eyes wandered around all the dark corners and shadows, like they were waiting to be attacked…


	2. Vampire Knight Convicted Preface II

Vampire Knight

 **Convicted**

A VK Fanfiction

The rain was slamming against the window, causing the glass to quiver as the thunder made the wooden panes tremble. Lightning lit up the dark sky, the stars were hidden by the thick storm clouds. Zero ignored it as he swept away the eraser shavings with his hand.

"Do you think Mom and Dad are safe?"

He looked up, seeing Ichiru staring out the window, facing the storm unafraid as lightning cracked across the sky, illuminating his twin. It was rare evening where it was just the two of them. Zero pushed himself off of the floor and walked to his twin.

"Come away from the window, Ichiru."

Ichiru glanced over his shoulder at his twin. Zero stepped forward and put his hand on his shoulder, feeling his bones through his thin pyjama top. Ichiru had not been feeling all too well as of late, and he hadn't been eating as much as he should. He felt so frail to Zero, and it frustrated him that he couldn't do anything about it.

Ichiru turned back to face the storm, "Zero, I want to become strong."

Zero stared at Ichiru. No one could see how strong Ichiru truly was, fighting his own battles every day inside his own body. Zero wished that the Hunters wouldn't refer to his twin as weak. Zero pulled Ichiru into his arms, hugging him tightly.

"Ichiru, you are strong. I believe this. I know this," Zero proclaimed and his voice echoed around him.

Zero opened his eyes, they were no longer in one of their old childhood homes, they were in a cell below Cross Academy and Zero was holding Ichiru close to him. Ichiru had shot him, and both were bleeding out on the hard cold concrete floor. Ichiru's hand was laid upon Bloody Rose, his fingertips just touched the bell that Shizuka Hio wore. The little bell chimed.

"Zero…I miss you, sometimes," Ichiru admitted softly, slowly raising his arms to wrap around Zero. "But we can be one, right?" Zero felt his shoulder ache, his blood was seeping down his cold skin, soaking his shirt while Ichiru smiled, "Sorry, for shooting you, Onii-san."

"Don't be," Zero hugged his twin tighter.

Ichiru chuckled, the sound brushed against Zero's ear and made his hair stand on end, "But a Vampire needs blood, right, Zero? You can have mine…not hers…"

"Hers?" Zero looked past Ichiru. There were no longer in the cell where Zero had eaten his twin. They were in a lounge, much like the one at their last house where his parents were attacked by Shizuka Hio.

Blood had splattered all over the walls, it was dripping from the paintings, seeping down the walls like a waterfall. The furniture was stained red, the rusty smell of blood filled the air with the lingering scent of some home cooking. Kaito, was in the corner, unmoving and staring at Zero with the same kind of hated defeat that Zero had seen once…with his own brother when Kaito and Zero were out in the log cabin and they had found Kaito's brother as a Level E.

"Not hers, Zero," Ichiru repeated again.

And then Zero saw it. She was laying on the floor, her skin was whiter than snow and had no warm blush in her cheeks that Zero had gotten used too. Her eyes that once sparkled with the zest for life that Zero had once held so dear to his heart was slowly fading, dimming as she reached out for him weakly.

She was lying in a pool of blood, it was smeared on the tiled floor as she dug her fingernails into the ground and dragged herself towards Zero. Zero sitting on the corner now, not far from him his twin was laying under the threshold of the room, his eyes hidden by his long hair. Zero felt hot, too hot. Zero lifted his hand to reach for his gun that was beside him, but it had vanished. Zero looked at where his gun had lay but saw his hand, covered in dark red blood. He lifted his hand to his eyes when the girl had reached him.

Her hands were warm as she caressed his cheeks, kindly, softly. Her blue eyes met his and she smiled weakly. Her hands were warm, fully drenched in blood like her clothes, her neck and her hair. Her fingertips caressed Zero, her thumb tracing over his bottom lip. Zero's eyes drank in every detail of her kind face, she was covered in bruises and bumps, his eyes trailed down to her neck where his heart froze. The skin on her neck was ripped open, blood was rushing from her flesh and saturating her skin. She forced Zero to look back at her.

"Not her…Zero…," Kira whispered weakly, her voice was so soft and cracked. Tears began spilling from Kira's eyes, mixing with the blood. Kira wrapped her arms around Zero and he could feel her heartbeat pounding against his chest. It was beating so quickly and it began to slow.

Slower.

Slower.

And it stopped.

"Kira?" Zero called out. He wrapped his arms around her but she was so small compared to him, so small. So fragile, "Kira-chan? Answer me!"

Kira fell against him, her body limp like a doll. Zero gathered her in his arms, shaking her and calling her name until his voice grew hoarse. He couldn't cry, the tears wouldn't fall from his eyes. He clung to her, held her close to his chest until he looked up and saw Yuuki standing in front of him, with Kaname standing in front of her. She was holding her neck, tears streaming down her cheeks but Zero looked at Kuran. He gathered Kira up in his arms.

"Help her. Help her, Kaname. Bring her back, please," he begged, holding Kira out to him, "Please."

"You've killed her, Zero. You've killed everyone," he answered.

"And it is the job of a Vampire Hunter to kill Vampires," Zero froze. He glanced over his shoulder and standing in the light, the sword held in his hands. Brown eyes that looked almost black never left Zero's as he raised his sword high above his head.

Zero watched as the man walked to stand right in front of Zero, hands trembling as he held the hilt of the sword higher. His silver hair was longer, the same colour as Zero's. His breathing was shallow and loud, and he never took his eyes off of Zero, even as he brought the blade of the sword down with a mighty force.

Zero stared. Stunned, looking up at the man who had just driven the blade through his body. He swallowed hard, "Dad?"

* * *

 **A/N: Bwahahahahaha.**

 **Confused? Good.**

 **Now you have to read the next chapter, bwahahaha. (If you want)**

 **Thank you for faving, reviewing and following.**

 **\- Kera (SBDI)**


	3. Night 1: Nightmares

**CONVICTED NOTICE: YOU SHOULD PROBABLY READ THE A/N BELOW. It has some things that some of the readers may not deem appropriate for my Rated T story… It's long and I'm sorry and if you read it all, you should add this story to your FAVES and review/comment with a "Good Jobu"**

 **I hope you like my story 3**

* * *

Vampire Knight

 **Convicted**

A VK Fanfiction

 _ **Night 1**_

 _ **Nightmares**_

 _A nightmare…_

Zero sat up straight, looking around the large lavish room that was unfamiliar to him. His heart was pounding behind his chest causing it to ache. He stood up from the couch, scanning the large room where it seemed like a good idea to put a small lounge set in the corner across from the door. Zero was slightly annoyed with himself. He frowned and scrubbed a hand down his face and ran his fingers through his hair. It wasn't like him to fall asleep in a strange house and yet, he had just woken up. He hadn't been sleeping well because of the nightmares but that was by far the worst––

The door opened and Zero turned to see the man that had entered the room was already wearing a nightgown, the fluffy collar propped up to the guy's neck, sleeves pulled over his hands and feet dragging on the floor. His hair colour was the same as Cross Kaien, even the man's half asleep expression reminded him of the Chairman, but Zero couldn't dwell on that now.

"Hello, I was shocked when Dai-chan told me that there was a strange man at the front door. Forgive me, it has taken me a while to wake up to greet you," the man shuffled over to Zero.

"It's fine. Sorry for disturbing you," Zero looked around the large room. "Is it just the two of you here?"

"Dai-chan and I are the only ones to occupy this mansion, yes," the man smiled. "To what do I owe the visit, Mr…erm? Forgive me, Dai-chan didn't give me a name."

"I didn't tell him my name," Zero kept his eyes on the man in front of him.

"Oh, I see," the man shuffled closer to Zero, "To what do I owe the visit, young man?"

Zero sighed, hands buried deep in the pockets of his coat, "I need you to return that girl."

The man's face feel, "Excuse me?"

Zero frowned, "That girl had saved up for months to buy some dumb mattress from the owners even before they were murdered. The auction is going to start in a few hours and it would be troublesome for us if you killed them all."

The man frowned, "I think you have the wrong house, sir––"

Zero pulled his gun from his pocket, aiming the barrel of the gun right between the man's eyes, "Save it, Vampire."

The man frowned and Zero turned around towards the window and fired two rounds, one at the window and one at the curtain rail. The curtain rail fell and the glass shattered, and streams of sunlight poured into the room. The man growled and jumped out of the sun's beams. Zero smirked.

"The sunlight is annoying," he turned the gun back to the man. "She should've bought these curtains instead."

The man growled and Zero fired a round towards the man who darted around the corner. Zero sighed and followed the man, picking up his pace just as the man slid into the foyer, fangs and wild eyes now exposed for Zero to see. This was the Level E responsible for killing the old home owners and multiple others who were interested in buying the furniture and property.

There was a growl coming from the stairs. Zero looked up seeing Dai, the man who had let him in after watching the man drag that dumb girl into the mansion, was now coming down the stairs on all fours. The man in front of Zero leapt towards him just as Dai did. Zero managed to block off the claw-like nails from the Level E and throw a punch right across his face, and dodge the attack from Dai at the same time. Zero aimed at the man just as Dai turned to lunge at him.

"Bonsai!"

Zero frowned as the dumb girl he'd come after jumped from the second story balcony that over looked the foyer, did a perfect somersault and land a powerful kick on top of Dai's head. Dai growled and made a move to lunge towards her but she fell down to her knees, did a quick leg sweep and open up a clear and perfect shot for Zero. He aimed Bloody Rose and shot two rounds. One that landed right between the eyes of Dai and another that landed in the man's chest as he pounced to tackle the idiot girl. Dust sprinkled over her and exploded in front of Zero. He covered his eyes with his arm and heard the girl cough.

"I'm sorry, Kiryuu. I couldn't hear you tell me how right I am while the two Level E Vampires just exploded," Kira said cheerfully. Zero moved his arm and found his childhood friend grinned from ear to ear, "I'm waiting."

"For what?" Zero replied.

She frowned, "For you to tell me that you were wrong, dummy. I told you there were Vampires living here!"

"I'm not going to apologize until you tell me why you waited so long to take care of them," Zero knocked Kira on her head and she frowned.

"Because every time I do, you complain that I never let you do anything," she screamed back, knocking a solid punch on his arm.

"You still took too long," Zero growled. He looked upstairs, "So where is this mattress? Did you get it?"

Kira grinned, "It's upstairs, already covered in plastic and waiting for us to take it home. We're lucky we came here before anyone else or someone else could have taken it…," Kira smiled at Zero. "And died but anyway, we saved the day! And got a mattress."

"I can't believe Mako said you could just come in and take it," Zero followed Kira as she skipped upstairs. She quickly darted into the room closest to the stairs and hugged the single mattress with open arms, "And I can't believe five months' salary is wasted on a bed."

"A year's salary was wasted on a car," Kira moved to a corner. "Besides, now we have three beds and we won't have to rotate using the couch and cram onto those single beds anymore."

"And we have a car to take a bed we don't need home," Zero moved to the other corner and picked it up while Kira helped manoeuvre it onto Zero's shoulders. "I don't know what you're complaining about. You get one of the beds most of the time."

"I'd be happy on the couch but every time I mention it you all fight about whose turn it is to sleep on the couch," Kira made sure that Zero got down the stairs without hassle and honestly it wasn't like it was a daunting task. The mattress was light and easy to manage but Kira didn't want Zero to get hurt.

They were outside by the rusty old car that they had bought a year before. They strapped it to the roof of the car and climbed in. Zero started the engine while Kira ran back to the mansion, locked the door and hid the key under the mat. She ran back to the car and jumped into the passenger seat beside Zero.

She was smiling happily until she looked at Zero, "Are you okay? You were gone for a long time."

"I fell asleep on the couch," Zero admitted softly as he began driving away from the mansion.

Kira stared at her childhood friend and reached over and caressed Zero's hair, "You haven't been sleeping all too well, Zoo-Zoo. Tell you what, if you admit that I was right, I'll give you first dibs on the new mattress."

Zero smirked, "Or I could get first dibs on the mattress anyway because you woke me up to come all this way to help you. And it ended up being even more of a mission because there were two Level Es."

Kira gasped, "No way, I could have come alone but no, you and the others won't let me go anywhere alone."

Zero frowned, staring straight ahead, "You know we can't do that, Kira."

Kira fell back against the seat and frowned, "But Zero it's been four years. Almost five. Come on, it'll be fine."

"You've already talked me into you getting a job, and going to University, no more Kira. We stick together. Always," Zero caught Kira frowning and glaring at him from the corner of his eye. He reached over and pet the top of her head, "Rather safe than sorry, Kira. I don't know what I'd do if I'd lost you again."

She rolled her eyes and pouted, "Clearly you wouldn't be able to tell if you get a good deal on a mattress," it was Zero's turn to roll his eyes but it made Kira smile, which is all he wanted. Kira giggled as they drove back home.

* * *

The Tank, as Kira called their home, consisted of three bedrooms, a lounge and one bathroom. It was an old wooden cabin in the woods that Yagari had dragged the kids when they were younger to train them. It was the cabin where Kaito had fought and killed his brother, it was the cabin where Zero had told Kaito off for being mean to Ichiru, it was the cabin where Zero and Ichiru's mother had prepared them vegetable soup and it was the cabin where Yagari, Kaien, Wana and Senji would often come too when life was being a little rough on them and drink the alcohol that they'd been collecting since they were twelve.

And now, their children were using it to do the same thing. For the last three years, this was their home, though it didn't look much like home. For the first two years, they all worked odd jobs to buy a car that they slept in when they couldn't find a cheap motel. The next task was to save up enough money to buy furniture once they had found out that Yagari's old cabin had been abandoned. It was old and dusty but it was slowly starting to feel like home. Though it was small, it was all they needed.

Zero put the bed down in the room on the old bed frame that had been left behind, making sure it was secure enough to hold someone's weight while Kira began brewing coffee. It was only the two of them in the Tank at the moment. Ichiru and Kaito were working today and would be back later, and Kira and Zero had taken the day off to collect the mattress and do a little eliminating.

Zero lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling above him. It was a comfortable mattress, not that he would ever admit that aloud. He sat up, knowing if he stayed longer he would fall asleep again, and he wasn't looking for another trip into his nightmares. He stood up, walking down the passage, passing the other two rooms and the bathroom and entered the lounge. He lingered under the threshold, where the lounge joined the kitchen and watched Kira watching the coffee pot boil.

She had cut her hair short for the last three years, it was grown out now uneven and back to her natural blonde, with the tendrils just touching the nape of her neck. When she was outside of the Tank, she would wear dresses and skirts that she absolutely hated. At home however, she wore pants. Everyone had to change their appearances when they went outside so if other Hunters were in the area they wouldn't recognize them. Kaito, Ichiru and Zero could easily hide their hair by wearing beanies or caps, but Kira had to cut off her almost white-blonde and black hair and let the blonde locks grow out naturally.

Zero stared at her now. He remembered when Kira stared at the mirror at a gas station, staring at her reflection with a knife in her hand. She said it wasn't a big deal to cut her hair short because she'd already chopped off so much of it before. But even as the blade sliced the blonde tendrils, Kira swallowed back tears. That was when they'd first left the Association four years ago…she couldn't finish, and Kaito and Ichiru couldn't stand seeing her cry so Zero helped cut off the rest of her hair that she couldn't reach. She hadn't cried in front of them since.

Zero sat down at their plastic table and put Bloody Rose on the table top, along with some of the bullets and second magazine, "Have you finished your assignments yet?"

Kira rolled her eyes, "I finished them before we went to get the mattress, Zero," she frowned. "Although, the math is a bit of an issue for me still."

"Bring it here while the coffee is boiling. Let me help you," Zero dug out a third magazine from his inside coat pocket and began filling it with bullets. Kira ran to the lounge and brought her books to Zero and laid it on the table.

It was Kaito's idea to attend University. They could only find part time jobs and he said that staying at home and doing nothing was going to drive them insane, which it nearly did. So to occupy their brains, they faked some school results and enrolled in the University where Kaito was working as a tutor and on their off days, they all worked at their part time jobs and odd jobs for the university which also helped to pay for their school fees. Kira worked late into the night sometimes, and Zero and Ichiru had annoying hours while Kaito sometimes only came home the next day, but that was because he wasn't only helping the female students with their homework…

Zero and Ichiru had top grades. Kira was also a good student, but her bad math scores brought her down, so the twins and Kaito tried to help as much as they could though Ichiru would quickly get annoyed with Kira, Kaito would tell her just to quit and Zero would lose his saintly patience, but they all stuck around to help.

"Zero, do you think we can buy another bed soon?" Kira asked happily.

Zero was resting his chin in the palm of his hand, elbow propped on the table. He frowned, "Are you seriously going to save for another six months to buy another mattress we don't need?"

"But then we'll all have our own beds," Kira gasped. She tapped his arm, "You wouldn't have to share a bed with Ichi."

"I don't share a bed with Ichiru," Zero replied.

"Maybe if you did you would be sleeping better," Kira pouted. Zero rolled his eyes but Kira ignored it as the smell of fresh coffee filled the air. She quickly got up to pour them each a cup, but lingered longer than normal. Zero saw her staring at one of the cups.

"Kira––"

"Don't fall asleep on the job again, Zero," she stood in front of him and pet his hair, "It's dangerous. And what goes for me goes for you. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you, too," she leaned over the table and dropped two white tablets in front of Zero, "It's been almost two weeks. Drink from Ichiru again, or start taking the tablets again. Or else I'll make you sleep in the car again."

Zero frowned at the tablets while Kira turned back to finish off the coffee. They had argued many times about Zero's Vampire tendencies and it was two against one as Ichiru had no opinion about it, but refused for Zero drink Kira's blood. Zero would either feed from Ichiru or take the tablets as often as he needed. Zero was trying to slow down daily feedings to every fortnight or hoping that one of them would forget but it was the one thing he and Kira often fought about.

"Fine," Zero mumbled as he took the tablets and popped them inside his mouth and swallowed it down when Kira brought his coffee. Kira sat beside him and stared at him, with wide expectant eyes. He frowned, lifting the cup to his lips, "What now?"

"You aren't going to tell me what your dream was about?" she asked, holding the cup between her hands, pinkies up.

Zero thought back to his nightmare. A bloody Ichiru, a dead Kaito, a dying Kira and a sad Yuuki and his long dead Father. No, he didn't want to tell Kira about his dream. He finished off his coffee, not caring that it was hot and put the cup in the sink.

"I'm going to cut some firewood for us, Kira. Stay inside and finish off your homework," he ordered. Kira frowned as Zero left the Tank, closing the door behind him.

The fresh air was cold on his face, the air was misty from being so high up in the mountain and just a stone's throw away from the lake. Zero grabbed the axe that was embedded into the wooden steps and took off his coat with one hand and threw it over the wooden perch beside the pile of logs that never seemed to end. He grabbed one log and chopped it up easily enough.

Zero listened to the birds singing and chirping loudly in the trees while he performed the task that was once daunting for his body. He remembered when they first came here he was eleven and it was his first time training with Kaito, he had ordered Zero to chop his logs as well. Zero said no but they were interrupted by Zero's family who had come to visit…

"Oi, Zero!" Zero turned to see Kaito coming up the pathway, carrying brown paper bags in his arms and looking very annoyed, "Didn't I tell you to park the car at the bottom of the mountain?"

Zero held the axe on his shoulder, "But if I did that then I'd have to carry the mattress all the way up the path."

"So instead I have to carry all these dumb groceries up the path?!" Kaito screamed back at him, walking faster towards the Tank.

"It's lighter than a mattress, Kaito."

Kaito cursed at Zero some more and walked into the house and started yelling at Kira for wanting the dumb mattress. Zero rolled his eyes and collected the logs and carried them inside to where he saw Kira pointing accusingly at Kaito.

"I'm sorry, I got us a new bed at an incredible deal and you went to buy food we don't need," Kira crossed her arms over her chest. "I saved for months to get that dumb bed that you're probably going to sleep on and it was a lot of trouble to get! There were two Level Es killing off auctioneers––"

Kaito dropped the bags on the plastic table and stared at Kira, "Two Level Es?"

Zero dropped the logs beside the fireplace in the lounge and dusted off his hands, "There were two Level Es in a mansion pretending to be the owners of the place but we took care of them."

Kaito fell down in one of the chairs and ran his fingers through his ash brown hair, "That's not good. I saw three Hunters in town, overheard them talking about hunting down a horde of Level Es that they tracked this way."

Zero crossed his arms over his chest, "A horde?"

"How close were you standing so you could hear all of that, Kaito?" Kira asked.

He frowned and glared at Kira, "I was breathing down their necks, Princess," her smile vanished when Kaito called her by her pet name given to her by the Hunters. He rolled his eyes, "In any case, they didn't look familiar but we should be wary of them. I don't know how long they're going to be staying in town for."

"Even then, a horde?" Zero sat down in one of the chairs, "A horde might come up this way, into the mountains."

"We're prepared for that, though," Kira grinned, placing a cup of coffee down in front of Kaito. He thanked her with a small smile.

"Even so, we need to watch out for both the Hunters and for a horde of Level Es," Kaito picked up his cup of coffee and inhaled the strong scent. Kira began unpacking the groceries, "If it's a horde, we might be out a lot more at night."

Kira handed Kaito a box of cigarettes that he'd bought. It was a nasty habit. One that both Kaito and Ichiru embraced. Kira frowned when Kaito tore it open and put one between his lips, "So that means you won't be sleeping over at your _students_ ' houses anymore, right?"

Kaito flicked the lighter closed and reached up, caressing Kira's cheek, "Oh, Princess, you know you're the only girl I come home too," he tucked a blonde tendril behind her ear. Kira's face turned beet red. She hit Kaito upside the head with carton and she scurried back to the shopping bags. Kaito smirked, "But yeah, we have to be even more diligent when we go out. For both Vampires and Hunters."

"But you didn't recognise them," Zero said.

"But they'll recognise you, Zero. Remember before we left, you were the heir to the Hunters Association," Kaito leaned forward, arms folded on the table. "When Ichiru gets here, we'll talk about it further."

"Talk about what further?" Ichiru had closed the front door behind him.

Kira stopped her task and smiled. She was practically glowing but didn't step over Ichiru's comfort zone. She still greeted him warmly despite the fact that he was often cold towards her, "Hello, Ichiru, how was work today?"

Ichiru threw off his jacket and threw it on the couch, "It was fine. I saw some of the kids from the University today," he sat down in between Zero and Kaito and stole a smoke from Kaito's new box and put it between his lips, "They were putting up posters for their friend that's been missing for a couple days now," he lit the cigarette and inhaled deeply, "So what are you talking about?"

"A horde of Level Es that have been tracked here by three hunters," Kaito replied.

Ichiru nodded, "Could explain the missing student. A horde is a strong word though, isn't it? They barely travel in twos and threes and now we're supposed to believe there's a horde?"

"There's a horde if they're controlled by a Pureblood," Zero commented.

"Why would a Pureblood bring them here? What's here?" Kaito killed his smoke, fanning the air because it annoyed Zero's nose, but mostly he fanned it away because Kira hated the smell just as much and he did it to annoy them.

"Why would one bring a horde to Cross Academy?" Kira sat down on the last chair, "Oh wait, there were two Pureblood and two Hunters that that one terminally insane Pureblood was looking to destroy. There is always a reason, Takamiya," she folded her legs underneath her on the chair.

Zero crossed his arms over his chest, "As long as the Hunters don't find us, we'll be fine."

"What about the Level E Vampires?" Kaito asked.

"We'll kill them. We may not be part of the Hunters Association anymore but we're still Vampire Hunters," Zero looked up and his eyes met Ichiru's. They stared at each other for the longest time before Zero looked around the table, holding the gaze of each Hunter present, "And it is the job of Vampire Hunters to kill Vampires."

* * *

CONVICTED

* * *

Late nights was what I missed the most about Cross Academy…

With Cross Academy perched on top of a high mountain overlooking the little town below, from the main building and even my room, I was so close to the night sky, it felt like I could just brush the stars with my fingertips. Here, hidden within the trees, I was further from the stars, lost among the leaves. It was a little sad. And more than a little lonely…

I wiped my nose, listening to Ichiru and Kaito argue downstairs about something or other again, it lessened my heartache a little. Zero was often thrown in the middle and they tried not to involve me too much. A part of me thought that maybe it was because it was normal everyday guy argument, the other part of me thought that they were maybe arguing about me…the back-from-the-dead-supposed-to-be-Vampire-Vampire Hunter…

The argument got quieter, which meant that Zero and Ichiru were now having it out at each other and soon enough one of them would storm off. Better them storming off than physically fighting again. I don't think Ichiru can stand it when I touch him and me stitching him up was probably more than he could handle. As he often chased me off when I touched him for too long…

"Princess," I turned to see Kaito behind me. I felt the Hunter part of me frown and curse because I hadn't sensed him because I'd been too caught up in my own thoughts. And with a horde of Level Es nearby, it probably wasn't a good idea.

"Takamiya," I greeted as he sat beside me. They all knew I liked to sit outside, but only Kaito ever joined me. Zero wouldn't sit outside with me anymore. He did once though, at the Academy before Ichiru came back.

"It's a little cold tonight. You shouldn't be outside, not until we knew the situation with the Level––"

"I know, Kaito," I stopped him. "Just for a few minutes, then I'll go inside."

He sighed, "Fine, Princess," he looked up at the sky. The night made his hazel eyes seem black but I could still see the warmth behind them. He looked at me, smirking when he caught me staring but I didn't look away, "Don't fall in love with me now, Princess."

"I won't," I replied bluntly and reached out to move his collar aside. There was a hickey on his neck, purple and red, it looked so much like a bruise, "You had better cover this tomorrow or else your boss will be a little suspicious about you knocking boots with students."

He hand covered mine and he smiled, "Thank you for the advice, but by tomorrow morning it should be gone. Thank Hunter genes for quick healing," I snatched my hand away and looked back up at the stars.

On some nights like this I would go out hunting on my own, now because of one psycho doctor I was forced to stay hidden. That little run in this evening was like a ray of sunshine, and I had been starved of sunlight for years. I had worked hard to become a strong hunter, and now I was basically dead. I turned to Kaito.

"One day, can I go out on my own?" I asked.

Kaito frowned and stood up, with a short, blunt answer, "No."

"But, Kaito––"

He stopped, "I said no, Kira. And Zero said no. No means no. It's not safe for you to go out alone."

"I've been my own a long time before this mess, Kaito."

"That was different. That was before Bakemono stole your blood and used it to bring dead Hunters back to life. We discussed this. No means no," he crouched down and put a hand on top of my head, "I'm sorry. I know you want to go outside, but until you and the twins are safe, it's my job to protect you."

"You took it upon yourself," I glared at the forest in front of me.

"I know I did. But that is because I trust no one else to look after my precious Princess and those dumb twins other than myself," he tucked some of my hair behind my ear and cradled my chin between his thumb and his forefinger, and forced me to look at him.

I glowered and growled when Kaito smirked, "Stop calling me princess."

"Never in a million years," he never took his eyes off of me. Kaito moved closer to me, cradling me between his legs while he rested on his haunches. He tilted his head and lifted my chin, his free hand held my head. He pressed his lips to mine and then stood up quickly, avoiding my punch, chuckling when I blushed again, "Sorry, sweetheart, I never get over the red face. Now c'mon, you have class tomorrow."

I rolled my eyes, "I'll be down in a minute. Five more minutes."

"I'll be waiting, Princess," he cooed just before he jumped down from the roof.

I rolled my eyes and looked back up at the sky. Ever since he found out that I had a small crush on him way back in my primary school days, he had been messing around with me, kissing me and caressing me. It was infuriating and annoying and…

And it wasn't the kiss I wanted…

But I kept it on my lips, appreciating the fact that Kaito cared about me enough to still tease me despite finding out that my blood had been mutated. Zero and Ichiru acted a little different. Zero and I were growing closer, becoming friends again like we used to be when we were younger until the mess unfolded. Ichiru barely acknowledged my presence, rather speaking for me than to me. My heart swelled when he defended me but it shattered a little more every time he waved off my touch…

When I was alone, my heartache was painful to bear but when I was with the boys, it was like all the screaming inside my head was muted. I jumped off from the roof and landed effortlessly on the ground below, I entered the Tank and saw Zero was watching the T.V that one of Kaito's bosses had sold to us for really cheap. He stayed quiet while I poured myself a glass of milk. Seeing as he was alone, I knew he would be crashing on the couch tonight. Again.

"I'm going to bed now, Zero," I leaned over the couch and pet his head, "Please try and sleep tonight."

"I will. Good night, Kira," he replied without looking at me.

I smiled and walked to the room at the end where it seemed like the hunters had given me the new mattress. I set the glass down on the bedside table and got dressed into my PJs. I sat on the bed, feeling the soft and smooth mattress beneath me, covered by a blanket and a pillow. I looked around the largest of the three rooms. It used to be Uncle Yagari's room and often he would tell me that Uncle Kiryuu and Dad would share this room, but tonight it was just me. Again.

I moved to my handbag and dug out my old jacket. Folded inside was a picture that I had kept with me since I received it what seemed like a lifetime ago. It was a picture that Uncle Kiryuu took, in this very cabin, with Kaito standing in the back beside Yagari and the twins in front. My twins were so different now. Ichiru and Zero hardly ever smiled. Kaito was still as sarcastic as ever...things were going so well before they all fell apart but now, I was slowly putting the pieces back together. We all were…

I took the picture with me to bed and set it on the bedside table. Slipping beneath the sheets and feeling my body bouncing on the new mattress made me giggle. I turned and stared at the picture, with Uncle Yagari staring at me. I reached out and turned the picture over. I felt awful for leaving Uncle Cross, Uncle Yagari and my family behind. But Bakemono would always look for me…

The thought always frightened me to my very core. I would dream often about being strapped down to a metal surgery bed while Bakemono would plug a whole bunch of tubes into me and slowly draw out my blood. Slowly, slowly––

My eyes snapped open and my heart was pounding in my throat. I sat up, shaking off the nightmare. I had too. Like Zero, sleep was almost impossible, but we had to keep moving forward. I threw the blanket off of me and left my room to get some water when I heard the old T.V was still babbling on, softer this time. I could see the top of Zero's head on the arm of the couch, his arm supporting his head. I tip-toed over to the couch and peeked over to see that it wasn't Zero. It was Ichiru and he was asleep. He was breathing slowly, evenly and deeply. I walked around to sit on the floor in front of him, making sure to stay quiet and not wake him up. Zero was the one who slept the least out of all of us and it worried me sick, and Ichiru was hardly ever around for me to fuss over him, but here he was now. Sleeping, and looking so peaceful and kind in front of me.

I reached out carefully, very carefully and placed my hand on top of his head, slowly rubbing his head. He woke up quickly, as if he hadn't been asleep at all and snatched my hand, "What are you doing, Kira? You're supposed to be asleep."

I stared at Ichiru, feeling bad that I woke him up, "I had a bad dream, that's all."

"And so you felt the need to wake me up?" Ichiru demanded, throwing my hand away and moving to sit up. But I grabbed his shoulders and pushed him back down into the couch. He glared at me, "Kira, stop this."

"What have I done to you? Why are you being so mean to me, Ichi?" I demanded angrily, loud enough to wake up the others.

He put his hand over my mouth, "Quiet, dumbass, you're going to wake the others," he pushed me off of him like I weighed nothing.

Ichiru had been training really hard since we left the Academy, even though he wasn't nearly as strong as Zero or Kaito, but he was slowly surpassing me and it filled me with a mixture of emotions. I was proud of him, glad he was becoming stronger but too afraid to be weak again. It was something of a love-hate relationship. I was envious of all the progress Ichiru was making while I had to hide away and do nothing. That fuelled the fire inside of me and I dug my heels into the floor and forced Ichiru back into the couch and climbed on top of him, holding him down. He stared at me with wide violet eyes.

"What. Have. I. Done?" I demanded again. Tears burned my eyes but I blinked them away. It was painful to be ignored by Ichiru, he was the only reason I came to find Zero and now he was ignoring me.

Ichiru grabbed my wrists and flipped me over. Now he was on top of me and he pinned me to the couch. There was a small hint of a playful smile on his lips and it irritated me. How could he play with my feelings like this?

"I told you to be quiet, Kira-chan," he whispered. His face was inches from mine, his breath was hot on my face. Ichiru pressed his body close to mine and the tips of our noses touched. He held my wrists over my head with one and with the other be brushed my cheek with his knuckles, "You don't want Zero onii-san walking in; do you?"

"This isn't funny, Ichiru," I tried to buck him off but he just put all of his weight on me and never moved his violet eyes off of my face.

"I think it's hilarious," Ichiru held my chin and suddenly pressed his lips to mine. My body froze, I didn't fight him. I just stared and felt my body grow warmer, my heart pounded behind my chest, loud enough that I think Zero could hear it in the next room.

Ichiru let me go, and wound his hand around my waist, pushing me closer to him while his other hand held my head. He forced his tongue between my teeth and he pulled back, chuckled and pressed his forehead to mine. I could feel his heart pounding in his chest, beating slower than mine.

"It's no fun if you don't play along, Kira-chan," he whispered. He sat up, pulling me up with him and made me sit on his lap. I stared at him with wide eyes, my face was hot and he smiled, "Close your eyes…," I did and I felt his hands wrap around me and hold me close to him.

He pressed his lips to mine again and slipped his tongue between my teeth. His mouth was like fire against mine, his tongue wrapping around mine while his hands slid underneath my PJ shirt. My eyes flew open and I pushed Ichiru away from me and I began falling off of the couch. Ichiru smirked and let me fall, following me to the ground, with his lips crushed against mine.

I woke up with a start, a scream escaping my lips and I sat up in bed, staring at the dark room around me. I glared at hands that were slowly turning into fists and growled, "It was a dream, stupid," I grabbed the pillow and screamed into it, the cry muffled by the softness.

My face felt boiling hot against the cold cushion and I felt like a giant moron. How could I be so stupid to believe that Ichiru would be interested in me that way? I screamed into the pillow again and thrashed around on the covers, a stupid smile on my face because even though it was a dream, it was absolutely wonderful but I knew that I would not get anymore sleep tonight…

I climbed out of bed and half-jogged to the lounge where I saw Zero was half awake and watching some dumb movie on T.V and suddenly I felt lonelier than ever. Ever since we'd runaway, we'd slowly allowed part of ourselves to be swallowed up. I used to be loud, cheerful and straightforward especially with my feelings but lately I'd been so quiet and shy and it wasn't like me. Zero, too, he used to be blunt but friendly, now it was more of a mission for him to even be a little sarcastic towards me.

 _Alright, Sudikako Kira, it's time to make your boys smile again!_

I scurried back to my room and grabbed my pillow and my blanket and threw it over Zero, and stuffed my pillow behind him. He frowned.

"What are you doing, dumbass?" he demanded but he was quiet when I dove under the blanket and pushed his body against the pillow and used his shoulder as my pillow. I tucked the blanket underneath my feet and peeked up at Zero through my lashes. He was staring at me, like I'd lost my mind.

I glanced at the T.V, "What are you watching?"

Zero blinked. Once. Twice. And slowly turned back to the T.V, "It's some old war movie. You hate war movies," I kept my yip of victory to myself when Zero put his arm on the back of the couch behind me, causing me to rest more on his chest than on his shoulder. It was hard to swallow but second yip when Zero pulled the blanket up to cover both of my shoulders, "Why are your cheeks so red?"

"I had a dream, couldn't sleep and now I'm here to watch a dumb war movie with you, duh," I turned back to the screen. "So, what's happening? Why are they running?"

"It's a movie about D-Day," Zero went on to explain what the movie was about and what had happened so far, but somewhere in the mess of all of that I had fallen asleep, and used Zero more as a teddy bear than as a pillow. When I'd done this before, Zero often woke me and sent me back to bed but when he didn't I woke up.

I peeked up to see Zero had wrapped his arm around me and had his head rested against the pillow, eyes closed and fast asleep. It was another small victory but one that would motivate me to get the Hunters that I knew so well back to their best. I rested my head on his chest and grinned.

 _Victory!_

* * *

 **A/N: So a few years ago I bought the Novella** _ **Vampire Knight: Ice Blue Sin**_ **, which inspired the location of where our precious Hunters are now resting. And I can't find Noir's Trap and while I was on my search for it, I found out that there is ANOTHER VK Novella:** _ **Vampire Knight Fleeting Dreams**_ **published in 2014. In short, my book will be delivered to me on the 22 of June. It's exciting, okay!**

 **I should probably say hi…**

 ***ahem***

 **GREETINGS MY READERS, it has been much long time since I saw you last (Not actually, I wrote a story for VK for Christmas that I am still busy with) with our favourite Hunters and their dramatic OC that no one probably likes, but that I like because in a way she is the fictional embodiment of me and through her I can obsess over the VK Characters all I want without seeming weird. (It's not weird okay!)**

 **And with my return, I do hope that you will enjoy this story but I will try not to involve my other fic VK: Innocence too much until I need too so at least if you haven't read Innocence, you won't be confused.**

 **I have been rereading the Manga, Novella's and even re-watching some VK episodes a lot lately because there is something about this story (Zero) that just inspires me to be the best writer I can be, so some scenes might look a lot familiar to you because I will be taking them to use in my little fic but putting my own spin on it because I am creative AF.**

 **And while it feels SOOOOOOOOOOO good to be back with the crew, I feel like I should warn some of my readers that in this fic, Zero, Ichiru, Kaito and everyone else is a little older and I am a little older so I might be addressing some adult themes that I dabbled in in Vampire Knight Innocence, to which I should probably warn ahead of time if you want me too, or I could surprise you like I did this chappie.**

 **It won't go full Rated M (because that shizzle ain't allowed no more), but it will be kind of the same way like in the manga (**SPOLIER ALERT FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NOT READ THE MANGA OR ARE STILL READING IT**referring to the scene where Kaname and Yuuki are NAKED IN––)**

 **I think I have addressed everything I needed to address this long ass A/N, and if not I will see you in the A/N in the next chapter. Also leave the review-comment-thingy: "Good Jobu" if you actually made it this far. (Or even read the A/N despite the fact that I warned you before the story even started that there was an important announcement which if you didn't get it was that I would be addressing ADULT themes. It's still Rated T though, so calm down.)**

 **And while you're there, leave a review, a follow and a favourite so you can know when the next chapter will come out or else you'll be lost forever and I WILL GIVE MY PRECIOUS HUNTERS TO THE WIVES OF DRACULA WHO WILL DIRNK THEIR BLOOD AND DRAIN THEM––**

 **Thanks for reading! Be sure to review, favourite and follow.**

 **K, love ya, bye.**

 **Kera**

 **SBDI.**


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